Animal I Have Become
by Amber Lehcar
Summary: When madness sets in, can Maka remind Soul who he really is? Based on the song "Animal I Have Become".


I found an amazing MEP part for Soul Eater with the song "Animal I Have Become" by Three Days Grace. It inspired me to write.

I don't own Soul... or anything else in Soul Eater...

* * *

Animal I Have Become

This is getting out of hand. That same imp keeps showing up in my dreams. I keep seeing things, hearing things. I haven't told Maka yet. Knowing her, she'd just get worried. Then she'd get upset that she can't help me. Can I even help myself?

Just the other night, when I saw my reflection in the mirror, I didn't see me. Instead, there stood some animal coming toward me, coming through the thin barrier of glass. I smashed the mirror. It was instinct I suppose. Maka came to check on me. When she took my injured hand, it felt like she'd placed a hot iron on my skin. She wrapped the wound and never asked about the mirror.

I couldn't sleep. When I did, that same dream of me coming out of Maka's stomach returned. I could hear Maka speaking to Lord Death through a hand mirror down the hall. She was concerned about me. That's when the wound on my hand began to itch like crazy.

When I scratched at the wound, the bandages fell away revealing maggots trying to retreat back inside my hand. I screamed as I tried to claw them from the wound. It brought Maka running. This time, her hands were ice cold, probably caused by her fear.

She rewrapped the wound, not seeming to see the maggots, and tried to convince me nothing was wrong with my hand. "Here, let me try something, 'kay? Think of the happiest time in your life, where you felt most like yourself. Lately you haven't been yourself, so really think about it. Think of that when you feel like you've lost yourself," she told me.

So I thought about it… the first thing that came to mind was at the DWMA entrance ceremony. I'd found a piano. I was about to play it when she showed up and asked me to play. I was afraid I'd scare her off, but she stayed for the entire song. That's when Maka Albarn asked me to be her partner.

"You just liked my playing." "No, I like you." That's when I felt most like myself. I wasn't being compared to my bother. I was being accepted for just being me.

Maka's voice interrupted my thoughts. "Can… Can I hold you…?" I was so shaken by her request that I couldn't really answer. She decided to take my silence as a yes.

Cautiously, like she was in the presence of a feral beast, she wrapped her arms around me. Forget the hot iron analogy, Maka's touch made me feel like I had been engulfed in flames. Throwing her away from me, I backed into the corner of the room and covered my face with my hands.

The look she gave me… confirmed that I'd become an animal. "This isn't me… This isn't me!!" I screamed thrashing around. I tried to reach out for Maka's hand from my memory, but the scene stained black and faded to her presently frightened face.

"You're so cold…" she whispered walking towards me. "Why?" I shrieked at her to stay away, to not look at me with those eyes. Those eyes that changed from fearful to caring. She wouldn't listen and just came closer, reaching out her arms to me. "Soul…"

Those eyes glued me to the spot, hypnotizing me. She took my wounded hand in hers. Either the heat from before had died away or I was so out of it I didn't feel any pain. I felt her warmth radiating off her hand, warming my icy cold fingers.

"My mother called this first aid," Maka said. "If you put your heart into hoping something will heal, then it heals sooner." She faked a smile. "I'm hoping you'll heal, Soul." Her struggle to smile for me hurt. I took back possession of my hand and saw the forced smile vanish.

I wasn't really sure what I was doing. Next thing I knew, I was holding her tight, clinging to her like a helpless child. Like I'd fall to my death if I let go. "You're so warm…" I whispered.

It took a little while for her to process what I said. Then, she hugged me back. "You are, too…" It was then that I realized two things: no matter how dark the night, morning always comes, and people that seem cold all the time can be warm too…

~End~

* * *

This is one of my first Soul Eater fics so please review! I'm always looking for things to improve on. The two things Soul thinks at the end are from Final Fantasy X and a Sasuke and Sakura fanart respectively.


End file.
